Several showers fell on and off during the day. By nightfall, not even a small puddle had formed on the streets of Kyoto, just a dampness that made one feel a sticky annoyance. Within the Luan Chun Garden of New Huai Lane, plants grew like mad, just like a person's ambition and aspiration, accumulating a good amount of rainwater in the nests of grass and eyes of flowers, like jars of wonderful and tempting honey.

He Zongwei stood silently with his back to the study, watching the Spring Garden after the rain, the honey in his heart gradually melting. He knew his idea was wonderful, but also extremely dangerous. A single misstep could lead to eternal damnation.

Fan Xian was not so easy to kill, and what horrified He Zongwei even more was that in the six years of contact with Fan Xian, he could always see a hint of murderous coldness in the young powerful minister's eyes.

He was now the Left Deputy Censor-in-chief and concurrently a Grand Academician of the Chancellery, and without a decree from the Emperor, the Supervisory Council could not touch him at all. His opposition to Fan Xian in the court had attracted many officials to join his faction, seemingly with unlimited glory. But only he knew in his heart that he was actually walking down a dead end, and his current situation was extremely precarious.

If the trend in the court continued as it was now, He Zongwei's focus would still be on the Censorate to check and balance the Supervisory Council. However, if the Emperor were to pass away one day, could this situation be maintained?

Whether the Third Prince ascended the throne or some other earth-shattering change occurred, it made no difference to He Zongwei, only the timing of his downfall and the degree of oppression he would suffer.

Unfortunately, He Zongwei had no solution to this trend. Continuing to endure it step by step, even if he became the leading Grand Academician of the Chancellery, what power could he have when facing the person on the throne in the future?

He had tried to find opportunities to get close to the Third Prince in the deep palace, seeking the greatest reliance for the rest of his life. However, any attempt in the past three years had been cut off by an unknown force just as he was about to approach the inner palace. It was these failures that made him realize in horror how great the power in Fan Xian's hands was, and that his influence in the palace was far more terrifying than people imagined.

Because of fear, because he knew his future would not be pleasant, He Zongwei became even more determined to stand on the opposite side of Fan Xian. Especially after His Majesty personally arranged a marriage, intending to ease the relationship between his two favorite generals, but was rejected by Fan Xian's unusually strong and unyielding manner, He Zongwei knew in his disappointment that he had no other path to take.

Perhaps the Emperor was just a little angry, but He Zongwei was genuinely afraid from the bottom of his heart. Although the Emperor was Fan Xian's father, his understanding of Fan Xian was not as deep as He Zongwei's. There was an old saying that the person who knows you best is often not your relatives or friends, but your enemy.

He Zongwei knew that Fan Xian would not let him go. He would not, like the Emperor, really believe that Fan Xian was a pure and solitary minister, prioritizing the interests of Qing Yu Nian in everything. In his opinion, Fan Xian was a monster who always put his own likes and dislikes first.

It must be said that He Zongwei's judgment of Fan Xian was correct.

...

...

There was no resentment in He Zongwei's eyes, only a faint self-mockery and a chilling coldness. He left the chaotic Spring Garden and returned to his study. The study was simply furnished, but the bookshelves on both sides were piled with a great number of books and accounts.

He walked to the bookshelf, pondered for a moment, and took out a small booklet from an inconspicuous spot. Then he sat down at his desk and began to check it with great care.

This small booklet was a list of those who died for their country in the Dong Mountain area after the Kyoto rebellion, jointly compiled by the Ministry of Rites and the Inner Court. He Zongwei was in charge of the Censorate and had the Emperor's trust. Long ago, he had obtained this list and had read it countless times in this quiet study.

The third page and the forty-second page were the most worn, indicating that he had flipped through them the most. These two pages contained the names and origins of the hundred Tiger Guards who died for their country and the personnel of the Supervisory Council who died in Dongshan Road. Two names stood out:

Gao Da and Wang Qinian.

Whether it was this small booklet, the final report of the Ministry of Rites, the commendation report of the Supervisory Council, or the final approval to the Inner Court, all had determined the deaths of these two individuals.

However, He Zongwei did not believe it. Long ago, he did not believe that these two had died. Even though he had confirmed afterward that the corpses collected on Dong Mountain did include these two, he still did not believe it, because the Supervisory Council could easily accomplish this kind of thing.

Again, He Zongwei knew Fan Xian better than the Emperor did. What made him suspicious were some small details over the past few years. First, Gao Da and Wang Qinian were Fan Xian's absolute confidants and should not have died so quietly and anonymously. In the Emperor's eyes, they were insignificant little figures, but in He Zongwei's eyes, these two had their own importance.

Secondly, he had been secretly watching Fan Xian for the past few years, paying attention to his every move, including his visit to the imperial tombs with Fan Ruoruo and officials from the Supervisory Council a few days ago. He also learned about it soon afterward and had personally investigated it once.

Like in the past few years, Fan Xian's visit to the cemetery was still so uneventful. The most important thing was that Fan Xian did not deliberately stop or burn paper money at the graves with the names of Wang Qinian and Gao Da.

Fan Xian was an extremely protective official who took great care of his subordinates. Especially for trusted aides like these who had died, logically speaking, they should not have received such treatment.

Finally, what made He Zongwei decide that these two people had not died was another small detail. After he became suspicious, he began to use the power of the Censorate to secretly observe the distribution of condolences. Gao Da had never married or had children in his life, so his death was naturally the end of the matter. However, Wang Qinian, the Chief of the Supervisory Council stationed in Northern Qi, had a wife, daughters, and family. However, although the Supervisory Council distributed condolences every year, no one knew who had actually collected them.

And most importantly, after Wang Qinian's death, his entire family was said to have moved back to their hometown, but no one in Wang's hometown had discovered the whereabouts of this family.

If Wang Qinian had really died, Fan Xian would definitely take care of Wang's family. With his temperament, he would never allow Wang Qinian's widow and daughters to wander the world in misery.

...

...

Wang Qinian had not died, so Gao Da had naturally not died either. And why were the corpses of two people who had not died on Dong Mountain? Why was the Supervisory Council helping them hide? On Dong Mountain, a hundred Tiger Guards shed their blood and blocked fierce swords. Gao Da was among them, so why didn't he die? Could it be that he deserted on the battlefield? Wang Qinian had been serving by His Majesty's side on the mountaintop beforehand. If he had not died, why was he not seen afterward? Could it be that he had run away when His Majesty was in danger?

He Zongwei slowly closed the scroll, a smile appearing on his lips. He thought that the capable subordinates that Lord Fan had brought out were indeed, at crucial moments, very much in Fan Xian's style, running faster than anyone else and valuing their own lives above all else.

This was a crime of deceiving the Emperor, punishable by dismemberment. He Zongwei understood the Emperor's personality too well. As long as someone dared to betray him, or rather, as long as a minister dared to put his own life before the Emperor's safety, he would be furious and deeply resentful.

Moreover, there were many people who had deceived the Emperor. If Wang Qinian and Gao Da were caught and brought back, they would naturally not escape death. Then what about the Supervisory Council? What about Fan Xian?

He Zongwei took a deep breath, his young and weary face suddenly showing a bit more vitality and a bit more murderous intent.

He could not find any opening to attack Fan Xian at all, so he could only wait for that miserable day in the future, unless he could provoke the Emperor's relationship with Fan Xian before the Emperor died.

To provoke the relationship between a father and son, of course, required intangible means such as intention. And the crime of deceiving the Emperor was a heart-wrenching thing.

In the end, this was probably Fan Xian's only weakness in his life. This man was too sentimental. If he had directly killed Gao Da and Wang Qinian back then, none of this would have happened now. Thinking of this, He Zongwei couldn't help but shake his head with a smile, then lowered his head and gently tapped the teacup on the table, making a ding sound.

Before long, two people walked in. One was about thirty years old, with a respectful expression on his face. Looking at this person's features, he somewhat resembled He Zongwei. The other was nearly fifty years old but was still dressed as a Confucian scholar.

"Wang Qinian, Gao Da." He Zongwei didn't mince words and said directly, "I've been investigating these two people for over a year. Do you have any leads?"

The person who resembled He Zongwei was actually a distant cousin. His voice was slightly hoarse as he replied, "We've vaguely caught some threads, but the Supervisory Council does things in such a way that even if you catch a whiff of something, you can't follow it at all. Everything stopped three years ago. Even if these two people still have secret contact with the Supervisory Council, I'm afraid it's in a place we can't reach."

He Zongwei frowned and nodded. He knew clearly that with the power of the Supervisory Council, whether Dean Chen personally took action or Fan Xian made arrangements, it was impossible for these officials in the court to shake that iron wall, unless he secretly ordered the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review to conduct a search throughout the world. But the problem was that this matter had to be done secretly, and the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review were full of spies from the Supervisory Council.

If his actions alerted Fan Xian and allowed the other party to plug the gap, or even secretly use some ruthless tactics out of anger, it was not what He Zongwei wanted to see.

"My lord, we can't find anything with just us. The corpses on Dong Mountain were counted, and although we don't know how the Supervisory Council did it, the number matched the list exactly. Moreover, there was a fire on the mountain path at that time, and the faces were burned so badly that it was impossible to tell anything."

The older Confucian scholar still didn't say a word. It was still He Zongwei's distant cousin who spoke. This person had only started working for He Zongwei in recent years and was extremely cautious in his conduct. He was already He Zongwei's trusted confidant, so he was assigned to investigate this major matter. He spoke relatively directly.

"During the Kyoto rebellion, the Zhengbing Camp's personal guards happened to surround the mountain. At least several thousand people died in that battle. It wouldn't be difficult for the Supervisory Council to secretly move two corpses." He Zongwei lowered his head and pondered with a frown. "Even if there was a fire on the mountain path, what about on the mountaintop? Although the battle between Grandmasters was extremely powerful, not many people died in front of the ancient temple. Didn't Ren Zhengqing and the officials from the Ministry of Rites all survive well? Why did Wang Qinian die? Did he die on the mountaintop or on the way down the mountain? If his body wasn't burned, we should be able to find some clues."

"But three years have passed, and the bones have long turned to ashes. They say that Wang Qinian is buried in the grave, so we have to accept that it's Wang Qinian." The Confucian scholar finally spoke, hitting the nail on the head as soon as he opened his mouth. "So investigating things from a few years ago is too difficult and will never reveal any problems. If you really want to open up a path from this, I think it's more important to find the living Wang Qinian and Gao Da."

He Zongwei fell into silence. Of course, he knew that his strategist's opinion was correct, but the problem was, if Gao Da and Wang Qinian were now hiding in Dongyi City or Northern Qi, living in anonymity, who could dig out these two living people?

"You can go down first." He Zongwei raised his head and said softly to his cousin, "This matter involves the face of the court, so be careful in everything."

He had been established in the central court for three years and had gathered some strength under his command. In particular, His Majesty had secretly provided him with some assistance, but he was still far behind Fan Xian. And this cousin was the primary candidate to handle things that He Zongwei couldn't do openly.

He Zongwei's residence was indeed incorruptible, but He Zongwei still needed silver to establish himself in the court, and he needed to support a large number of subordinates who sincerely followed him. This cousin was the person who handled these matters.

Only He Zongwei and the elderly strategist were left in the study, which seemed somewhat quiet. After a long silence, He Zongwei said, "If we can really capture the living Wang Qinian and Gao Da and bring them back to Kyoto, how do you think things will develop afterward?"

"Lord Fan will definitely protect these two people." The strategist lowered his head slightly and said, "With His Majesty's temperament, if this matter doesn't blow up, he might give Lord Fan face and cover it up."

"You mean... even if these two people committed the crime of deceiving the Emperor, His Majesty would forgive them?" He Zongwei's eyes flashed with a cold light as he said coldly, feeling a complex mix of emotions in his heart. If His Majesty was truly so benevolent as to forgive those two people, what was the point of all his hard work?

"The key is to see what price Lord Fan is willing to pay for these two subordinates." The strategist said with a bitter smile, "Everyone in the world knows that Lord Fan treats his subordinates extremely well. If he really tears off his mask and insists on protecting these two people, what will His Majesty do? Will he kill him? My lord, don't forget that Lord Fan is ultimately His Majesty's own son."

"Own son?" He Zongwei slowly closed his eyes. "The Crown Prince and the Second Prince are also His Majesty's own sons."

"That's true, but... the Crown Prince and the Second Prince didn't take Dongyi City for His Majesty without shedding a drop of blood." The strategist's voice trembled slightly when he said the words "Second Prince," then he whispered, "Using a piece of territory to exchange for the lives of two subordinates, His Majesty has that bit of benevolence."

"Of course." The strategist glanced at He Zongwei's disappointed expression and said faintly, "Even if we can't force His Majesty and Lord Fan to turn against each other, we can at least plant a thorn in His Majesty's heart."

He Zongwei shook his head, opened his eyes, and looked quietly at the strategist in front of him. "Fan Wujiu, you were originally one of the Second Prince's Eight Generals. You turned gray overnight because of the Second Prince's death, and that's why you came to serve me. Our goals are extremely consistent, so you know that if Fan Xian doesn't die, I will. If you want to avenge the Second Prince, you have to think clearly. A thorn is far from enough."

It turned out that this strategist, who looked over half a century old and had a weathered face, was actually one of the Second Prince's most capable Eight Generals, Fan Wujiu! During the chaotic battle in Kyoto between the Second Prince and Fan Xian, the Eight Generals were almost completely wiped out. However, Fan Wujiu had seen long ago that Fan Xian's momentum was unstoppable. After unsuccessfully trying to persuade the Second Prince, he left in disappointment.

Unexpectedly, many years later, after the Second Prince committed suicide by taking poison, this Fan Wujiu returned to Kyoto and joined He Zongwei, wholeheartedly seeking revenge for the Second Prince.

After a long silence, Fan Wujiu said softly, "If we want to make this matter big, we can't do it secretly. We have to make it known throughout the court. His Majesty values his reputation the most. At that time, no matter how powerful Lord Fan is, I'm afraid he won't be able to stop His Majesty's killing blade."

"If His Majesty really kills Wang Qinian and Gao Da this time, I'm curious about what Fan Xian will do." He Zongwei smiled slightly and said, "And besides His Majesty, besides the Inner Court, I can't imagine who else can find those two people in this vast sea of people under the Supervisory Council's cover."

"But there's one most important question." Fan Wujiu looked calmly into He Zongwei's eyes. "If you want to secretly report to His Majesty, you're afraid you'll have to take a great risk yourself."

"Oh, how so?" He Zongwei didn't show any panic, but asked indifferently.

"Because you don't have any solid evidence in your hands. All you have are some guesses and analyses. Of course, you should be able to persuade His Majesty to become suspicious based on these guesses and analyses alone." Fan Wujiu looked at him again and said softly, "His Majesty should become suspicious of Lord Fan... but he will also become suspicious of you."

"I am wholeheartedly loyal to the court, loyal to His Majesty. Why would His Majesty suspect me?" He Zongwei pressed his lips together tightly and said softly.

"His Majesty will suspect that you are deliberately provoking the relationship between him and Lord Fan, his son."

After a long silence, He Zongwei said softly, "If His Majesty really becomes suspicious and no longer protects me, what kind of end do you think I will meet?"

"If His Majesty doesn't like a person, there are many ways to deal with him. I think you might be found a reason three years from now to leave the Kyoto court and take office in some remote place, and then you will be mediocre for the rest of your life." Fan Wujiu said calmly.

He Zongwei smiled bitterly, sighed, and his eyes were full of calm and determined expressions: "If I take action, the end result may be that I am swept into the dust, but if I don't take action, the end result will be that I am smashed to pieces. Which one do you choose?"

He smiled slightly at Fan Wujiu and said, "I choose the former, because at least I can survive. And if Fan Xian really turns against His Majesty, it will be difficult for him to survive."

Fan Wujiu blinked his eyes, and his white hair stood out in the dark night of the study, shining eerily. He said quietly, "You seem to have some resentment towards His Majesty in your heart."

He Zongwei's face remained unchanged, but the emotions in his heart were churning non-stop. He had endless gratitude towards the Emperor, but he also had endless resentment. If the Emperor hadn't raised him up to compete with Fan Xian, how could he be constantly trapped in a precarious situation, and how could he be so afraid of dying without a burial place in the future?

"Back then, the Second Prince was actually in a similar situation to you now." Fan Wujiu smiled dimly and advised softly, "So you must learn from the Second Prince's lessons and maintain a heart of unwavering loyalty to His Majesty. If you really find Wang Qinian and Gao Da, maybe His Majesty won't suspect you, and it will only be Fan Xian who suffers."

"I have always been loyal to His Majesty." He Zongwei replied calmly, glancing faintly at Fan Wujiu. He knew what this person was trying to probe. To avenge the dead Second Prince, Fan Xian was naturally one of Fan Wujiu's targets, and the ruthless and cold-blooded Emperor could not escape Fan Wujiu's eyes either.

He Zongwei said with a hint of sarcasm, "A person should know where their abilities lie. Dealing with Fan Xian is already beyond your and my abilities. As for those figures above the clouds, it's best not to even think about them. That will... kill people."

...

...

(This is the corrected version. It should be Fan Wujiu, but I wrote it as Fan Bian... I got it mixed up with Xie Bian. Apologies.)